Few bands in the history of bluegrass have generated the buzz, gossip, and rumors that Cherryholmes has in its swift rise to prominence. This California family climbed from playing six hours a day at an apple orchard on fall weekends to winning the IBMA’s Entertainer of the Year in just five years. Anyone who experiences such swift and well-deserved success attracts professional jealousy and scrutiny to a degree not often seen in bluegrass. But I’m willing to wager that those who idly gossip or spread rumors about this close-knit family have never met any of them, had a conversation with any of them, or worked with them, because if they had they would come away with an impression of a focused, driven, fun-loving family who appreciate that their fame came unusually quickly and who are determined to live up to the expectations and responsibilities that the Entertainer of the Year title confers upon them.

I met with Cia on a sunny Sunday afternoon in December, one of her few days off, in that urban temple of caffeination: Starbucks. She was doing some last-minute shopping for a photo shoot that week for their new CD, Cherryholmes II, on Skaggs Family Records. The theme of this album is change and contrast, so…

Read the Full Article in the print issue of Bluegrass Now, or call for a back issue.